Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

LightNews

Parallel Polis

@parallelpolis.info

180 followers 11 following 74 posts

empowering individuals through technology, education, and collaborative innovation △ opt-out! △ https://parallelpolis.info/

parallelpolis.info

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Nov 10

Ever heard of Paralelní Polis? It's one of the most fascinating concepts to emerge from Cold War-era Czechoslovakia 🇨🇿. Coined by Václav Benda in 1978, it proposed creating parallel structures alongside the authoritarian state.

🧵 1/7 ▼

Vaclav Benda

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

8/ The tools exist. The question isn't capability—it's adoption.

Stop asking platforms to secure their honeypots.
Start building protocols that can't create them.

Don't lobby. Build.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

7/ The regulated internet will become the regulated financial system: surveillance dressed as safety.

Or we build the alternative.

Protocols, not platforms.
Cryptographic proof, not document collection.
Tools that serve users, not control them.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

6/ This is the cypherpunk thesis:

You can't have privacy with centralized control.

Every checkpoint accumulates power. Every database becomes a breach. Every "protection" becomes a weapon.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

5/ The technology to do this properly exists:

✅ ZK-proofs for age without documents
✅ DIDs instead of centralized databases
✅ Protocols (Matrix, Nostr, AT Protocol) not platforms
✅ Cryptographic attestation not uploads

The problem isn't technical—it's mandates requiring wrong architecture.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

4/ You can't secure what shouldn't exist.

Every "reasonable" regulation creates identity honeypots. Every platform becomes a target. Every support system becomes a vulnerability.

Good security requires data minimization. Regulations mandate data maximization.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

3/ Now age verification mandates are doing the same to social networks.

Platforms forced to collect & store government IDs. Centralized databases at scale. The breach was inevitable—regulatory mandates created a 1.5TB honeypot.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

2/ Financial KYC turned banks into surveillance nodes. "Prevent terrorism" became: scan your passport, store your biometrics, report your transactions.

Result: constant breaches, mass surveillance, financial exclusion.

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · 1d

1/ Just as states gradually regulated access to finance, they're now regulating access to social networks.

Same pattern. Same outcome.

Discord just leaked 2.1M government IDs. This is what happens when you turn convivial tools into checkpoints. 🧵

pixel art style image, abstractly showing the contrast between a broken, centralized system and a more secure, decentralized network

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Sep 2

"A Return to Cypherpunk Values" by Sterlin Lujan @monerokon.org 2024

Advocating for a return to cypherpunk values over the "crypto casino" trend, the proposal includes building a "dark forest" infrastructure to safeguard freedom and unify "punk" ideals.

parallelpolis.info/v/qm978gqLUG...

A Return to Cypherpunk Values

Going to provide a talk on returning to cypher punk values and discarding the crypto casino mentality. I will explain what "cypherpunk" means and why the crypto casino does not align with those anti-e...

parallelpolis.info

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Aug 30

"Tor: From the Dark Web to the Future of Privacy" by @susansegfault.bsky.social

A biography of Tor — a cultural and technological history of power, privacy, and global politics at the internet's core. #book

Free PDF: direct.mit.edu/books/oa-mon...
Buy: mitpress.mit.edu/978026254818...

Tor: From the Dark Web to the Future of Privacy

A biography of Tor—a cultural and technological history of power, privacy, and global politics at the internet's core.Tor, one of the most important and mi

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Jun 24

Be part of the creation of the new BORDEL in Prague and help us transform chaos into shared creation

→ bordel.wtf

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Jun 24

They paid ~$6,5k for a ghost. The Prague domain (paralelnipolis.cz) is now a hollow AI, its physical shell finally shed.

Let them have the ashes. We kept the fire.

A new Parallel Polis is forged in the digital expanse.

Source: x.com/SodomakCZ/st...

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · May 27

The darknet market maximalist – “We are concerned with preserving civil liberties and will fight tooth and nail to defend them. There will be no compromises.”

antimoonboy.com/darknetmarke...

Reposted by Parallel Polis

Web3Privacy Now @web3privacy.info · Mar 11

Early speakers behind Cypherpunk Congress from cryptographers to policy makers.

Building anti-surveillance tools, fostering anti-big tech collab environment, promoting fresh gaze on cypherpunk culture.

congress.web3privacy.info

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Mar 9

Ethereum Cypherpunk Congress #2 (2025) by @web3privacy.info #devconnect

📅 November 16, 2025
📍 Buenos Aires, Argentina

lu.ma/u2sw5kpv

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Mar 9

"DarkFi: 500 Year Forest Dynasty" by Rachel Rose O'Leary @ Eth Cypherpunk Congress 2024 @web3privacy.info

Forest-as-a-metaphor of shelter for communities to flourish, neo dark age, shifting power dynamics, self-defence digital tooling, anonymous coordination

parallelpolis.info/v/av2KLxXZz3...

DarkFi: 500 Year Forest Dynasty

Rachel Rose O'Leary on forest-as-a-metaphor of shelter for communities to flourish, neo dark age, shifting power dynamics, self-defence digital tooling, anonymous coordination at Ethereum Cypherpunk ...

parallelpolis.info

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 23

"Assembling the Cypherpunks of the Future" by @drnick.bsky.social @ Ethereum Cypherpunk Congress 2024 @web3privacy.info

Talk about expanding cypherpunks desires, historical parallels, focus on privacy, cypherpunks in 2024 and challenges ahead of us.

parallelpolis.info/v/AGUrqPJDr...

Assembling the Cypherpunks of the Future

Nick Almond from FactoryDAO expanding cypherpunks desires, historical parallels, focus on privacy, cypherpunks in 2024 and challenges ahead of us.

parallelpolis.info

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

7/ The dream of cryptoanarchy and decentralized autonomy isn’t dead—it’s evolving. Let’s build communities that stay true to their principles, resist centralization, and empower everyone, not just a few. 💪🔗

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

6/ The future of decentralized communities lies in learning from these mistakes. Prioritize transparency, accountability, and true decentralization. Let the spirit of PP live on in new, more resilient forms. 🌱✨

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

5/ Yet, PP’s story isn’t just a failure—it’s a lesson. It reminds us that even the most idealistic projects can fall prey to centralization and ideological compromise if we’re not vigilant. 🛑⚠️

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

4/ Toxic leadership exacerbated these issues. Blaming others, rewriting history, and exploiting the community created a culture of mistrust and fear. Leadership became a bottleneck, not a catalyst for growth. 🚫🤝

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

3/ Ideological drift further eroded its foundation. From cryptoanarchy and cypherpunk ideals, PP shifted toward commercialization and survival, losing sight of its original mission. The vision that once inspired many became diluted. 💡➡️💸

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

2/ PP’s downfall was rooted in the concentration of power. A project built on decentralization saw control over resources and decision-making centralized in the hands of a few, alienating the community and betraying its core ethos. 🏛️➡️🔒

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 22

1/ The story of Paralelní Polis Prague is a cautionary tale about the dangers of centralization, ideological drift, and toxic leadership. What began as a beacon of cryptoanarchy and decentralization ultimately fell victim to the very systems it sought to oppose. 🧵

Parallel Polis @parallelpolis.info · Feb 21

"Decolonizing Money" by Julio Linares @ Ethereum Cypherpunk Congress 2024 @web3privacy.info

How to move from Big Tech dependency, build a sovereign stack towards socio-technical counter-positioning

parallelpolis.info/v/OT1MYlona2...

Decolonizing Money

How to move from Big Tech dependency, build a sovereign stack towards socio-technical counter-positioning unpacked by Andreas from Fileverse & https://ddocs.new

parallelpolis.info